Game: An Alternative Game
I am bored, therefore SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION FOR JURASSIC SPLIT! An anomalous spacetime tear has emerged. It has torn through numerous dimensions, although this happens to be made of a few neat portals outside of the extra ones. You have been tasked with exploring the world inside the portal, and making it back in one piece. Little is known about the portal, except that it should get beings of flesh safely to the other side. JULIUS MARS REPORTING FOR DUTY As you come around a corner after shooting some shrews to death, you see something odd. There's a strange glowing area in the middle of the street. You can hear sounds coming from inside it. It sounds like lots of people trying to play music at once, except it isn't quite like any music you know. You hear more shrews, however, and it sounds like lots of them. What do you do? I call Project Vigilance HQ on my radio. "Dr. Thresher, I may be a while. Going through a portal. Over and out." I then roll through the portal, quickly checking my surroundings on the other side, gun at the ready. (2) You roll through, and end up facefirst in saltwater as a bunch of little rat-like things scurry out of the way. You manage to keep hold of your gun, but you have a splitting headache (-1 crafting, influence and tech for a bit). After making sure you haven't dropped anything, you get up and survey the surroundings. Oh dear. It seems you've got yourself stuck in some sort of natural event, and predators abound. The beach you're on is filled with the rat things, which (now you look) have strangely lengthened snouts. A large bat-like creature- about the size of an eagle- with a long crest flies right over your head, before snatching up a rat thing. As you look over the rest of the beach, large possum-like creatures skitter around, snarling at each other as they hunt or steal. There are a few large birds with tails roaming around, and you see a...dinosaur?...about as long as a bear. Having taken a primer in life sciences, as is required for PV operatives, I recognize some of these animal types. What type of dinosaur do I see? How many legs does it walk on? You recognise the bat-like creature as a pterosaur. The rats appear to be laying eggs, after you see a seabird land and start eating them from a freshly-buried clutch. The possums are about as big as a large cat. The birds seem to be some sort of raptor-like dinosaur themselves, while the main dinosaur has twin tufts of quills and more quills all over its back. It's standing on two legs, and is robust and muscular. There are tusks in its mouth. From what you can gather, the dinosaur is a giant heterodontosaur, which is a type of herbivorous dinosaur. 'There are a few more of these heterodontosaurs around. More examination reveals a few more types of animals. Odd ammonite-like creatures crawl around on the mud flats, mostly digging for eggs but sometimes going after the rats as well. In the sea, you can see a seabird being torn to shreds by some sort of seal-like animal (you can't figure out quite what it is). Further up the beach, a pair of large marine animals emerge from the waves and waddle to a bit further up, where they lie down. Deciding to spend a little while here, I fill my pockets with eggs and move inland to collect wood for a fire. (2) You walk inland a bit, and start collecting wood. You hear a rustle from behind you, and turn around just in time to see a large animal pounce on you! It pins you to the floor, making you drop your gun, and bites you in the shoulder (25 damage!). You have a large, ragged wound in your shoulder. There's a call from another animal, and it lifts its head up. You can't focus on it much (because you have a gaping wound in your shoulder), but it's the heterodontosaur! It seems those tusks are built for tearing through flesh. You don't have time to ponder, though, as it's still distracted. What do you do? Gasping for breath, I use my good arm to lift one of the logs I gathered, and crash it into the animal's head (rolling a 6) It works, and the beast is stunned for a turn. It stumbles, and you're free! However, whatever distracted it is probably still close. What do you do? I hit the tusky over the head with my log again, rolling a 2. I then back into a tree and look around. (4) The animal manages to duck under your swing, but it's clearly had enough of being beaten over the head. It retreats into the bushes. On the other hand, another creature walks out of the bushes. And another. And another. It's more heterodontosaurs, but their large bellies give away that they're a herbivorous variety. A few pot-bellied pterosaurs (probably a pterodactyl) are perched on their backs. I gather my gun and wood back up, then head back to the shore. I try to build a fire. (2)' It's just a string of bad luck for you, isn't it? You trip, dropping the wood in a tide pool. You'll have to let that dry before you can make a fire. Meanwhile, there are still numerous predators around, who'll gladly take an injured person who can't see in the dark, and it's just about sunset. You walk up the beach a bit, then realise you dropped the Magnum. You walk up to get that, and by the time you've found it, a bunch of those ammonite-things have been chewing on your wood. This is not going well. I sigh in frustration, and throw one of the ammonites as far as I can into the ocean. I look around for the portal that brought me here. (3) The ammonite, having a shell nearly as wide as your head, isn't thrown very far. However, they get the message, and crawl away huffing and puffing. You look around for the portal, and see a faint glow. Seems it's not very strong, so no access for today. A couple of the birds are looking at you with interest, considering your injured arm. However, the feast of rat things is plenty, so they probably won't attack. Unless you're unlucky. What do you do now? I squat beside the dimming portal, hoping its meager light will be enough to ward off predators. (2) Nothing happens for a few hours. You are then rudely attacked by something grabbing you from behind in its jaws (20 damage!). It shakes you around in its jaws, and begins to drag you back to the ocean. (1) Random flailing results in it getting you in a better grip, and you feel its crushing jaws (5 damage!). (4) However, something bigger and meaner rushes up, and the attacker gives a loud squeal of pain. You get a vague image of four flippers and a beak, before you rush to the surface and take a deep gulp of air. After failing to cast a fireball spell, I swim desperately to shore, probably dropping my weapons in the process. (5) The predator doesn't notice you as you escape. As you get into shallow water, you look back, and see the shell of a predatory turtle as it tears its prey apart. You're lucky to be alive. However, you're still injured, and not feeling too good. The headache's gone, though, and the wood should be dry by now. That's a total of 45 damage I've wracked up here. I build a fire, then look around for ammonites. (4) You see a small one, and grab it. It bites you in the hand for your troubles (10 damage, it's a bit venomous), but you manage to throw it on the fire and hear it puffing and huffing in pain as it is cooked alive. Revenge is sweet. So is calamari. After it's been cooked a reasonable amount, you take it off with a stick. The shell is awfully convenient as a plate, so (once it's cool enough) you pull the meat out of the animal and put it on top. A couple of small mammals are sitting fairly close, but they're the lynx-sized ones, so no problems. I eat the calamari. The eggs I gathered earlier... are those still unbroken? If so, I fry them in the ammonite shell. (6) Yeah, they're all still fine. You cook them to perfection and eat them. Nothing happens until morning. Your wounds have stopped bleeding (+5 health). The creatures on the beach are still ignoring you, for now, but another 'tusker' has appeared. I raise my Mossburg 500 and fire at the tusker, rolling a 4. That would be a hit, doing 90 damage... I just barely killed it. I walk to the corpse and cut out one of its tusks, then check the portal again. (2) Oh heck it's open and there's pseudoscorpions. One notices you, and then-'' ''HOLYSHITTURTLE The turtle from earlier bursts out of the water, and grabs one, dragging it back into the water. Meanwhile, there are still 2 more, who will reach you in 2 turns. With my Mossburg, I fire off a shot (3), hitting one of them. I then start running into the forest. (5) The first scorpion, being a rather dumb animal, doesn't realize you're the one shooting at it and walks towards the ocean to fight that turtle. (You hear a splash a bit later.) As you run to the forest, the second pursues you, but some sort of large mammalian predator drops down from the trees and pounces on it. It must be another species that came to take advantage of the feast. As they tussle, you'll probably be able to get in a good few more shots. I probably won't have enough time (or ammunition) to kill both of them, so I try to circle around them to get back to the portal. (Speaking of which--how much ammunition do I actually have?) (About one clip left for each gun.) (5) Distracted by the tree-mammal, the other scorpion doesn't give chase. You manage to escape to the beach, where there's a large gouge mark where the scorpion used to be. The turtle presumably accepted its challenge. You make a mad dash for it, but you stop for a few seconds. Out to sea, you spot some sort of crashed ship. You'll have to investigate that further. For now, though, you roll through the portal, and look up to see another member of Project Vigil''ance. ''"Looks like you've had a hard time." YOU'VE RETURNED HOME Congratulations! Your wounds have been fully healed, and you've had your ammo clips restored. However, there's still the matter of that ship. Due to the difficulty of getting a ship through the portal, they have suggested a scuba dive to the island. Do you accept, and continue the mission? I accept, but request backup and a harpoon gun. You walk through the portal, with a medic and technician following you. Both will likely be necessary, considering there's an unknown crashed craft and dangerous things. The egg-laying event seems to have passed by now, so there's probably going to be less predators hanging around the beach. Deeper water, though, may still have dangers. Probably more than just those turtles. Do you set up some sort of base before you dive, or just go straight in? I request a couple of soldiers, possibly even a Magician, to guard the portal while we're away. (A base would be difficult to maintain, and it's doubtful we'll be here long enough to need one. Worst case scenario we take guard shifts through the night.) (4) They give you three soldiers to guard it, and four on the other side so there isn't a pseudoscorpion incident again. After half an hour of watching for animals coming up to breathe, they spot a large turtle with an alga-covered back. It appears to have a flat beak, unlike the hawk-bill of the predatory turtle. Do you choose to dive? Category:Games